Maybe I'm Growing Up?

So, I'm thinking that maybe I'm growing up......at least a little bit. This coming from someone whose Facebook status last Saturday was "Lydia totally turned into a 5 year old and rode her bike through the (lake-sized) puddles on the trail today". This was followed by comments from my husband, a long time friend, and my daughter, all of which basically emphasized that turning into a 5 year old was not a new occurance, but pretty much normal behavior (like the fact that I ride shopping carts in the parking lot, as my daughter helpfully pointed out!)

So, what makes me think I'm growing up a bit? I read a book I disagreed with and didn't throw the book across the room, get mad at the author or just give up on reading it. The book in question is "Plan B: Further Thoughts on Faith" by Anne Lamott. I read her book "Traveling Mercies" a couple of years ago and absolutely LOVED it. I loved the topics, her writing style, her personality and the fresh point of view that it brought. I laughed out loud in some spots. Other spots brought me to tears - like when she was describing how she finally came into relationship with God: after years of Him pursuing her, she finally broke down and "gave up" and let Him in. Last year, I found her book "Bird by Bird" (on the topic of writing) and loved it also - same style of writing, and with good insights for those of us who want to "be writers." So, on a visit to Portland, Oregon's "Powell's City of Books", when I found 2 books of hers that I hadn't read AND they were cheap, I bought them both and brought them home with great anticipation.

Then, I began to read "Plan B"........in which she basically castigates President George W. Bush...and the war in Iraq...and any other "Republican" position.......in, like, every other chapter.......with great sarcasm and anger........ (sigh). And in alot of the other chapters, she puts Jesus in a "liberal Democrat" position, highlighted up against the "conservative Republican" position. Your guess who the good guys are!

My usual response would be to get all in a huff about it, and rehearse in great detail (in my head) all the arguments against her positions, and to counter-argue what she would surely argue back. And I would write little sarcastic notes in the margins where I disagreed with her. And certainly put her on my 'black-listed' list of authors.

But I didn't do that. I admit, I still thought about why I disagreed with her comments regarding President Bush and the war in Iraq; my brain still went to responses to her positioning Jesus as she did and why I feel it doesn't do justice to the text of the Bible. But, I didn't write little notes in the margins. I did finish reading the book. I laughed out loud at her unorthodox way of describing coming to middle age as a woman, and at her ability to capture in words the difficulties we experience rasing kids and what happens when they hit adolescence; I cried as she wrote about the struggle she went through coming to the decision to put her Mom in a long-term care facility and the process of forgiving her Mom for, well, alot. I cried when she wrote about friends dying of cancer, and then laughed again at the small pearls of wisdom that her priest friend gives her when she asks for help. In other words, I enjoyed the book. I would probably even recommend it - maybe.

I think this all shows growth. I can disagree with someone without arguing or being disagreeable. That was something one of my professors talked about alot in seminary - disagree without being disagreeable. I am learning that just because I disagree with someone - even on such big subjects as politics and religion - doesn't mean that I can't have a relationship with them. I don't have to spend my time arguing with them, proving that I am right. I know what I believe, I know why I believe it, and I am certainly willing to share that with you. But I don't HAVE to. Which is not to say that I think there is no such thing as right and wrong, or that I am not passionate about what I believe. It's just that I don't need to be like Marty McFly in the "Back to the Future" movies.......every time someone calls him 'chicken', he goes all nutso and tries to prove them wrong. Life goes alot more smoothly when he becomes secure enough not have to prove people wrong, when he figures out that he is not a 'chicken', no matter what others call him. Maybe it's a security/insecurity issue........or maybe it's just growth. I think it's the latter.......but it's OK if you think it's the former :)

And yes, I am about to start reading "Grace (Eventually)", the second book I bought in Oregon.......I'll let you know how it goes! :)